Description:

The paper describes Melba Pattillo Beals' account of her experiences as one of the original nine students to integrate Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957. The paper recounts Beals' vivid recollections, that are, for most American teenagers, unimaginable experiences. The writer of this paper considers this story of nine heroic crusaders to be one of the most incredible he has read.

From the Paper:

"Ms. Beals begins her story by clarifying a critical but rarely considered point: A person that happened to be born black in the segregationist south didn't come into the world knowing the rules were different for him or her than for other human beings. She describes the process of discovering she is not allowed unlimited access to the world around her. While white children delighted in fancies like riding a carousel, white adults treated her youthful joy and desire to experience such things with repugnance. She recalls the restrictions under which black adults existed and the indignities they had to endure, watched as they accepted subordination to white people to avoid the imposition of undue and unjust consequences. She shares how her youthful curiosity and downright indignation at these unfair limitations put her in harm's way more than once in her childhood."